February 16, 2022 - 4:24am
Pizza stone
Wellcome from Chapel Hill, NC, home of the Tar Hills (no one quite knows why they are called that)!
I am finding a myriad of recipes for pizza dough, so that is not an issue. All the directions so far, except that put forth by Jack the Baker (YouTube) say to put the pizza directly on the hot pizza stone in the oven. Jack, however, advises putting the pizza first on parchment and then into the oven. That makes sense for easiness and cleanup, but I thought the pizza stone serves not only to crisp the crust but also to absorb excess moisture.
Is either OK or is one option more desirable than the other (parchment vs. no parchment)?
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The only reason to use parchment paper is ease of loading the pizza in the oven. If you are not used to loading pizza, parchment may be a good idea. Otherwise loading without parchment is preferred.
If you decide to use parchment, you can remove the paper in the oven once the crust starts to set.
No noticeable difference to crust toasting at stone dough interface. Haven't used a pizza pan in years. Since I tend to sprinkle cornmeal or semolina on the parchment (or directly on the peel) before placing the dough, the parchment method is a bit tidier. If you're new to pizza on a stone, I should explain that the grit prevents dough from adhering to the peel or the parchment. Because I pretty much always resize/shape the dough after a few minute rest (before topping and after), the grit allows the dough to be stretched and pulled without sticking. It also "lubricates" the slide from the peel. Again, use of parchment makes this less important. Cornmeal and semolina tend to scatter during the sliding operation, but tend to stay in place on the parchment when the pizza is slid onto the stone. Direct from peel (no parchment) to stone tends to scatter more of the grit around the oven. You can use the parchment method without any grit to avoid the mess, but I kind of like that gritty cornmeal crunch that adds texture to the pizza experience.
Cheers,
Phil
Tar Heels not Hills.
My bad!
Having had many stones in the past, and followed by four years of using a steel plate instead (many for sale on amazon, suggest 1/4" thick). Yes they are heavy but make superb pizzas with a far superior crust than the stone. Same one hour time as a stone to preheat and yes, like a stone, place pizza directly on the steel. Go to Seriouseats.com and see all of their steel testing. Suggest a 16 inch square vs. round. If you already have the stone, enjoy it; if it ever breaks, go for the steel.
Regards,
Nick